9 QUICK AND EASY WAYS TO RELIEVE STRESS

Stress creeps in on the best of us. I truly hate the days I feel stressed. I usually wake up feeling different. Moody. And for me at least, there doesn’t seems to be an easy way to beat daily stress!
Stressful days seem to kind of spiral out of control, until we find ourselves on the couch with a warm washcloth over our eyes and popping a painkiller or two.

• For me I usually get annoyed at the information out there for de-stressing. I don’t have the time or willpower to exercise for 30 minutes a day.

• I either don’t have the ingredients or truly don’t want to eat all the bland and boring health food they suggest.

• And it is NEVER quiet long enough here for me to meditate! (if it is where you are, this is a great practice!)

I decided to create a list of things I truly enjoy that make me happy, and feel BETTER! Things I can apply right now, things that make me take a deep breath and remember everything is okay!

These are my quick and easy ways to relieve stress in my life!

I hope these help you too!

DRINKS THAT RELIEVE STRESS

Tea: Tea is very beneficial and healing. It helps to reduce stress and anxiety and a bonus is that is promotes weight loss and appetite control!!

Lavender Lemonade: I know this goes under the category of “not having the ingredients in the cupboard” but bear with me. I too did not have the ingredients necessary for this recipe when I first found it. However, I made it a point to get them, and KEEP them on hand! This beautiful, elegant, lovely, treat is not only a calming experience for the eyes, but the taste buds as well. The lavender is proven to de-stress and relax the most tense muscles in your body. This is one to keep cool in the fridge!

FOODS THAT RELIEVE STRESS

Berries: Especially blueberries are rich in antioxidants and chalk full of vitamin C, which aids in the repairing of damaged cells due to stress. Get your hands on some fresh or even dried berries and treat yourself to a little break.

Cashews: Being a salty and crunchy snack they also help with cravings. However, cashews are high in zinc. Studies have been linked to low levels of zinc causing anxiety and depression. Keeping these little morsels on hand is a good idea.

Dark Chocolate: A bar of dark chocolate is really what does it for me! Mind you it has to be quality dark chocolate, full of all the antioxidants and blood pressure lowering qualities!

HABITS THAT RELIEVE STRESS

Evaluate: We will in a world of habits. We can create and change them, or be enslaved to them. It is always good to evaluate what habits are serving you and which are causing you more stress.

Time Blocking: By placing time around the things we need to get done, we make sure to not allow the world to pull us in all different directions. We also create a cushion around our time tables that allow for unfortunate events, like traffic or the like. This can also be related to finances, having an emergency fund helps elevated the possible catastrophic events that will come up.

The Art of Saying “NO”: This is generally the foundation to our stresses. Most people have a hard time with telling people NO. Either because they don’t know how to do it nicely so they just don’t, or they are afraid to let someone down. I used to be this person. I was always afraid to disappoint someone, or that they wouldn’t think highly of me if I said I couldn’t do something for them. So I would stress myself and my family out so badly. I have come to learn that most people don’t really bat an eye when you tell them you can’t do something. The less information you give the better. A simple, “that actually won’t work for me, can I get back to you with some dates and times it will work better?” works absolute wonders! Learning how to say no gracefully and taking care of yourself and the things that you need done will elevate stress levels drastically.

Deep Breath Exercise: Like I mentioned before I don’t like to work out for 30 minutes at a time, and it is NEVER quite here long enough to get through even a short 15-minute meditation with my 5 small fries! 😊 But that doesn’t mean that both of those things aren’t EXTREMELY beneficial to relieving stress. So I made my own version of both! Combined! I call it my MOMENT!

I take 5 deeps breaths in and out and stretch. I get away from whatever it is I’m doing and close my eyes and calm my mind and body by breathing deeply. Then I stand up and stretch. Bend down and touch my toes and bend from side to side. Getting the blood rushing into all my muscles and especially my brain. This clears my mind and helps me remember that everything is truly okay!

This is the list of things I do (sometimes multiple times a day) that truly help me relieve stress and find my happiness again! Those days are real. And they are hard.I would LOVE to know of a trick that you do that helps you to relieve stress quickly that most people don’t know about! 😊 Email me or leave your great tips in the comments!